Searching for HDMI cable for my PS3

[gino_76ph]

Hi there!

I've just bought a new PS3 this week and i wanted to ask of any recommendations for a really good HDMI cable for that near-perfect sound & picture quality?

Does the cable need to be gold-plated and all those fancy technical giberish terms that you feel makes it stand-out?

Please advice.

[JimmyBoy]

Any will do mate, being a digital connection it'll either work or it won't, don't be fooled by high quality £100 cables! By all means buy a branded cable as at least it won't fall apart like a 99p eBay jobbie but don't be fooled into thinking the more you spend the better the picture it'll be the same

[jimbouk]

Amazon basics ftw. Mine's never missed a beat running 1080p and sound with it.

[jimborae]

As previous posters have said any decent quality hdmi cable from amazon and the like will just as good as a £100 Monster Cables rip off cable. The only time it's worth paying more is if your cable run is over five meters. For a 1m-2m cable I wouldn't entertain paying more than a fiver and probably get good one for a lot less.

[Funkstar]

And some people will try and tell you a particular cable works better than other with a <insert device name here> but they all work the same.

Just like the console branded SD cards there Sandisk were flogging. They were identical to all their other cards, but a different colour plastic and a fancy label.

[aidanjt]

The only difference I've ever found with HDMI cables is their fit, some are slightly tighter retained with less play than others. But all that does is make sure the signal isn't interrupted by heavy vehicles rattling by. So just avoid the flea market, but there's plenty of reputable online retailers who stock properly made HDMI cables at sane prices.

[Dookie]

+1 amazon basics, also had no problems with belkin. Got a 5m one of those which was about a fiver too.

[Funkstar]

Oh, another plus for Amazon Basics is their Frustration Free Packaging. I truly hate blister packs.

[gino_76ph]

You know I don't usually go for the common PCWorld/Argos/Poundstores/Supermarket-type of cables. I just thought being "gold-plated" means there has to be some kind of advantage or being from a "known brand" makes it more reliable etc. I would still avoid the "generic" ones though.

And i have heard QED HDMI cables have a very good reputation on the things. But does it really matter?

Any more good makes out there? Heard of Logik and Belkins but dunno which ones i should go...

[jim]

It doesn't matter one jot. I've bought loads now, usually from eBay - I sort by lowest price, UK location, and it's nearly always a big dealer. Never noticed any difference between those and branded ones.

Any make will be fine IMO.

[Larkspeed]

All of the HDMI cables in this house are 1.99 ebay jobbies and I have never had one fail yet and I cannot see any picture or audio difference between these and the expensive 60 euro cable a friend lent me while I was waiting for these to show up.

[directhex]

HDMI logo = can transmit all HDMI audio and video perfectly, just as well as a $10,000 cable.

£3 cables carry HDMI logo certification.

[Butcher]

I always buy the cheapest cables on Amazon marketplace, no problems so far.

[Funkstar]

One thing I will say with regards to more expensive HDMI cables: some of them are better. Not the ones that claim magical powers due to incredible materials, but some do have features that basic cheap cables don't have.

Most HDMI cables don't have the pins required for ethernet over HDMI, the cables that do are usually a bit more expensive. Very rarely a requirement still. Longer cables need thicker gauge wire, same goes if you are pushing the higher data rates of 4K or deep colour video.

Even for a high speed, ethernet enables cable, there is no reason you can't get one for under £10 for a decent length.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI#Cables - More detail that you probably ever need.

[gino_76ph]

Saw a £29.99 original Sony 1M HDMI cable. I'm sorry to be such a cynic but i always thought being a gold-plated and magnetically shielded cable (with some version 1.4 or something higher) will always have a "slight" advantage over others.

[directhex]

Saw a £29.99 original Sony 1M HDMI cable. I'm sorry to be such a cynic but i always thought being a gold-plated and magnetically shielded cable (with some version 1.4 or something higher) will always have a "slight" advantage over others.

For analog connectivity, you're absolutely right.

For digital, there are two options: "works as described" or "doesn't work". If it has an HDMI logo on it, it works as described. Sure, a more expensive cable might be able to handle, say, a much higher data rate - but HDMI doesn't *use* a much higher data rate, so it's pointless